


Red Is For Explosions

by ValiantBarnes (Cimila)



Category: Dreaming of Sunshine, Naruto
Genre: ANBU shenanigans, Gen, red team - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-13
Updated: 2019-05-13
Packaged: 2020-03-02 11:54:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,629
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18810391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cimila/pseuds/ValiantBarnes
Summary: Red Team has successfully faked an earthquake - and it seems like it’s not just Bat who’s keen for more.Hawk did not know that being an ANBU captain was akin to herding cats.





	Red Is For Explosions

**Author's Note:**

  * For [theTempest724](https://archiveofourown.org/users/theTempest724/gifts).



> Hello I'm submitting this late because I'm a terrible person, and have no excuse at all. *dabs* I hope you enjoy it the Tempest724!!

It starts out of Hawk’s sight, far up on a mountain in Earth Country. The signal received, the mountain trembling beneath their feet, Towa and Komachi set off the charges, and watch as a mountain falls at their feet. Dark silver and blonde hair snaps in the wind caused by the destruction, precious seconds to take in the devastation before they retreat. They don’t make for the rendezvous point yet, pieces of mountain still sheering away, drawn down by the sheer force of the building landslide.

The pair share no words, no hand signs. Towa and Komachi simply exist together, side by side, witnessing an act of nature that should never have been able to be caused by something so simple as paper and chakra. 

Eye contact from beneath bone white masks. Even without facial cues, body language blank, like recognises like.

There’s a spark, and neither are sure yet whether it will catch.

They arrive before Hawk-taicho and Bat, and all of Red Team attempts to be nonchalant about their success. Maybe Hawk-taicho and Bat are unsurprised by mission success - Bat’s a sabotage specialist, requisitions,  _ something _ , to be able to think of a plan like this. Maybe Bat regularly levels mountains, rearranges geography to suit her whims.

Towa and Komachi have never affected such grand, visible change on the world.

Hawk-taicho leads them out of Earth Country. Behind his back, at his side, unknown to all - a spark.

 

 

Hawk is absolutely certain that he should have been suspicious on their next mission. He wasn’t, of course. In hindsight, an absolutely foolish move. He should know by now that Shikako’s particular brand of sanity is catching. And he does. It’s only, he had stupidly thought that Bat would not have the same effect. 

It starts small.

“Maybe an explosive tag? A small one.” Comes a voice that is not Bat, as the four of them crouch over a map. Komachi taps a gloved finger over a store room. “This is where some of the staff hide for an on shift smoke break.”

An old store room, half the contents unknown, half the storage taken up by old files. Apparently there are renovations going on, to expand the room where all the files are kept. An excellent time to infiltrate and remove one single file, or storage scroll. The particulars about how exactly the file is stored is unfortunately vague.

“A distraction, drawing guards away from here.” Hawk agrees, indicating the target room, a few corridors away.

The plan is set, a small explosive tag - less chakra emission than even a small fire jutsu. Subtle. Something to cause panic, rather than extreme damage.

Red Team returns to Konoha soot stained and smokey, standing before their Hokage.

“Report,” She orders, and the continued verbal only mission parameters and reports  _ really  _ should have been a neon sign to Hawk.

“Mission success.” The file, in a storage scroll, is already on the desk in front of Tsunade. She looks unimpressed, and taps a finger on the scroll.

“Complications?” She asks, not bothering to ask whether there were any, this time.

“An old storeroom proved surprisingly flammable. Half of the compound burnt down before the blaze was able to be subdued.” The Hokage’s lips thinned out, and Hawk continues before she can draw the wrong conclusions.

“We watched the compound for the next day, and there was no suspicion of our involvement. The fire was apparently caused by a smouldering cigarette butt, incorrectly extinguished. Most of the file storage was destroyed, so our mission target will not be missed.”

“Congratulations on a successful mission, Red Team.” She says, dismissing them, lips reluctantly pulling into a fond smirk as they go. She likely assumes that it’s ANBU Bat’s fault that events spiralled as they did.

But it’s Komachi who spent the trip back with visions of fire behind her eyelids. Who collapses into bed that afternoon, clean on the ash and smoke scent she’d held close to her skin for the last few days, and can’t help the giddy smile on her face.

Komachi has never been overly interested in explosions, or fire. Or anything too flashy or overt. She knows where her strengths lie, why she’s in ANBU in the first place. So comfortable in the shadows she should have been a Nara. 

And yet there’s something irresistible about causing a raging fire, about stealing a river.

Like the regrettably flammable storage room, a spark has caught, the fire catches.

Most ninja have a penchant for destruction, but Komachi has had a taste of Bat’s style of mission success, and she’s never been the type of person to back down from a challenge.

 

 

“Would it be within mission parameters to simply destroy the bridge.” Hawk had been doing his best to send ‘don’t even think about it’ vibes to Bat, and is therefore completely blindsided by Towa speaking up.

“Simply.” Hawk deadpans.

“It would be simple.” Bat agrees, and without twitching a muscle, Komachi seems to wiggle with excitement.

It’s at that exact moment that Hawk realises that Bat is not immune to Shikako’s infectious behaviour. He expects it from Bat, he’s been getting suspicious of Komachi for the last few missions, and now Towa wants to destroy a bridge.

The four of them are perched in a tree, no map to hover around, humidity almost oppressive. The trade route in question is scant kilometres away, all four having scouted it - and the bridge - the previous night.

“It should be within mission parameters.” Komachi murmurs, and Hawk thinks that maybe this would happen less is Tsunade was less inclined to give Red Team such wide mission parameters. Luckily, there’s enough rope for Hawk to strangle every member of his squad. He certainly feels like doing that at the moment. Instead, he suppresses a sigh.

“The bridge is quite old, and not well maintained.” He pulls out a map of the surrounding areas. “Best guesses to where the trade route would shift to?”

Hawk can feel the glee radiating from his squad, and very carefully doesn’t glare at Bat. This is definitely her fault.

 

 

“It’s bonfire night in two days,” Bat says, contemplative, as though she has not just waved a red flag in front of three bulls - herself being the third.

Hawk wonders if the other ANBU captains ever have to deal with this. He’d like to know they’re suffering just as much as he is.

Does his entire squad need to be reminded what the word discreet means?

 

 

Wolf-taicho has taken to lurking around ANBU headquarters, and now that Cat-taicho isn't’ actively trying to chase him out, no one appears overly concerned. Not to say that Cat-taicho doesn’t still try to shuffle him along, but all sincerity is gone. 

_ Wolf-taicho _ , he says, reading the same scroll over Wolf’s shoulder,  _ you can’t be here _ .

_ This cafeteria is for  _ current  _ ANBU _ , Cat-taicho says, taking some of Wolf’s dango for himself.

_ Can you get me that scroll from the locker you absolutely shouldn’t have? I didn’t get to finish it. _

So Hawk doesn’t bat an eye when he comes across the pair of them lounging in headquarters, simply throws himself down next to Cat, completely ignoring the rest of Red Team shuffling in behind him. Or, shuffling implies some sort of repentance. They stroll in, absolutely unconcerned with their Captain who’s seriously considering sending them all back to ANBU training so Bull and Magpie can beat some damn subtlety into their heads.

“Taicho,” He says, gaining the attention of both Wolf and Cat, “Are your squads good at being subtle? At hiding and working beneath the radar.” Cat’s confused blink is visible even beneath the mask.

“We’re ANBU,” he says, as though it’s obvious. 

And it really, really is.

“Interesting.” He grinds out, the slight voice modulation on his mask making him sound exactly as irritated as he feels right now.

“Are you being seen?” There’s a sharpness edging into Wolf’s voice, tension creeping into his frame, and Hawk reluctantly shakes his head.

“No. No mission failures, either.” Both Wolf and Cat relax, and Bat snickers from across the room, Towa and Komachi don’t make such obvious sounds, but it’s clear they’re also amused.

“In that case, take fireside snacks next time.” Wolf says, and Hawk stalks out of the room before the rest of Team Red can laugh at his misfortune.

 

 

At some point, Hawk knows, you must throw being a respectable ANBU captain out of the window. He’s knows that the moment has been approaching, faster and fast with each mission they go on. In truth, he doesn’t mind too much. Hawk likes explosions and destruction as much as the next ninja. It’s just not the way in which ANBU is supposed to operate.

Quietly. In and out without being seen, or suspected. 

And that’s what Team Red has been doing, even if it’s not at silent and unnoticeable as the idea of ANBU would suggest. But they’ve had few mission failures or retreats. They remain unspotted. They haven’t even had to engage in combat yet.

Hawk’s got a pretty good squad, all told. Even though it feels suspiciously like herding cats, sometimes.

Far away from Red Team’s current position, in the Hokage’s office, Tsunade drains her sake cup for no other reason than she’s made a decent dent in her paperwork, and she’s sure it’ll explode into chaos again soon.

“Looks like this building is slated for demolition,” Hawk says, to the stunned amazement of Towa and Komachi, and the satisfaction of Bat. She knew he couldn’t resist for too long. They have been having an inordinate amount of fun, even with the silence and secrecy and absolute lack of backup. 

“How convenient,” he says.

Underneath four masks, there are identical Cheshire grins.


End file.
